Museum of Fine Arts

Among the city’s many museums, two deserve special mention and should be incorporated into any trip to Buenos Aires. Perhaps the most complete and well-maintained is the famous Museo de Bellas Artes (Museum of Fine Arts) located in the upscale district of Recoleta on Avenida Libertador. Here you’ll find permanent classic art displays as well as temporary exhibitions from modern Latin American artists. If contemporary art is your guilty pleasure, make sure to pay a visit to the Museo de Arte LatinoAmericana de Buenos Aires (MALBA).

Grafitti

Only true Porteños – inhabitants of Buenos Aires – know about the city’s real artistic treasures, which can be found virtually on every corner. What may seem like vandalism to many is actually Buenos Aires’ most extraordinary and creative form of artistic expression: graffiti. Convince a friendly local to show you around, or take a Buenos Aires walking art tour to see the most impressive of these ephemeral masterpieces.

San Telmo, Buenos Aires’ oldest district, is teeming with such works of art and is a pleasure to explore—you never know what you’re going to stumble upon. Make sure to stop at the Art Factory Hostel, which houses the city’s largest permanent exhibition of graffiti and mural art.

Art Galleries

Buenos Aires is home to a spectacular number of smaller art galleries, many of which deserve a stop, if only for a peep. Most of them can be found in the district of San Telmo or Palermo. Among the most alternative and acclaimed galleries is Mar Dulce, brand new and boasting a well-stocked library of art books. Another top choice is Wallrod, which is off the beaten path and probably one of the most happening galleries in Buenos Aires. Once a month most venues stay open late and put on shows for Gallery Night.

Art Fair

Internationally recognized as a world capital for arts, Buenos Aires annually holds an International Art Fair, known as Arte BA, where artists from around the world gather to share their work and set new art trends. This year, the fair will take place from Thursday, May 19 to Monday, May 23 everyday from 1 p.m. to 9 p.m. Over 70 art galleries throughout the city will be participating in the event and will display works from selected artists. The trendy and bohemian barrio Joven Chandon will host the fair.

If you wish to learn more about Buenos Aires’ many treasures and attractions, and start planning your exciting Argentina vacation, contact one of our travel advisors.

Buenos Aires, the city that never sleeps

After breakfast in your Buenos Aires hotel you should head out to explore this huge city.

For a first time visitor, Buenos Aires can be overwhelming, as the city is packed with hundreds of excellent restaurants, dozens of museums, art galleries, and on-going exhibitions.

You should start by making your way to Plaza Mayo, which is where Casa Rosada and the Central Cathedral is located, and was the famous place where Eva Peron spoke to crowds before her death.

From Plaza Mayo you can head up Av. Diagonal Norte to Plaza de la Republic, which is graced by the grand Obelisk. Av. 9 de Julio, the largest avenue in the world, cuts through the heart of Buenos Aires.

By this time, you’re probably thinking about lunch. Nearly every street corner in Buenos Aires has a gourmet restaurant. If you walk up Av. Honduras towards Palermo Hollywood you will find plenty of terrific restaurants. Plaza Serrano, which is at Av. Serrano and Av. Honduras in Palermo, is a nice place to find somewhere to eat.

The trendy Palermo district is split in two by train tracks. The SoHo side is home to Buenos Aires’s young middle class. In Palermo Hollywood are Argentina’s movie and TV studios, as well as a number of smaller cafes and bars. Venturing over the train tracks is definitely recommended.

After lunch spend some time exploring the streets before you head off to the Museum of Latin American Art of Buenos Aires (MALBA)? on Av. Pres. Figueroa Alcorta. The museum houses an interesting collection of modern as well as pre-Columbian art.

Nearby is the Museo Evita (Av. Lafinur 2988) which is dedicated to the life of Eva Peron, who was immortalized in the movie Evita and was played by Madonna. The film shows what Argentina achieved in the post-war period to tackle poverty, fight inequality, and improve education, as well as the horrible story about what happened to the body of Eva after her death.

A short walk up the street with take you to Plaza Italia which is next to the Buenos Aires Zoo, which is open till late, especially in the summer months. You can spend time meandering the expansive park.

If you are looking to spend the night like a typical porteño, going out late and dancing you should head to Av. Cornel Niceto Vega and Av. Humbolt. Vega Avenue is lined with chic clubs open all night long. Av. Humbolt has a number of restaurants, a cinema, and a British/style pub.

If you happen to wake early after a late night out in the city and it is a Sunday morning, you should make your way to the street market in San Telmo (Av. Defensa) where they sell a range of market goods, food, and what San Telmo is famous for, antiques.

The area of San Telmo is very artsy, with the main plaza in San Telmo having tango and dance shows put on by locals every week. The plaza is also a good place to find something to eat and a small bar to listen to some live jazz.

After exploring the streets around San Telmo, you should make your way over to the residential area of Recoleta.

Recoleta is home to the famous Recoleta Cemetery, the resting place of the Argentine high society. Some of the graves are more like monuments and it is worth having a look around.

From the cemetery you can walk to the nearby chapel and then down to the Recoleta Design Center which is more like a mall, selling the very latest in fashions from Argentina and the world.

There are some great lunch spots around here, just see what you can find. But for a quick lunch, you can pick up an Argentine empanada, a meat-filled sandwich available on nearly every street corner for only a few pesos.

You can then walk down to the Museo Nacional de Bella Artes (Av. Libertador), the museum of fine arts in Buenos Aires.

No trip to Buenos Aires would be complete without exploring the stuff that runs through the blood of every Argentine – a passion for soccer.

When the Boca Juniors play in La Bombadero stadium, the city stops and everyone’s attention centers on the game. The stadium, located in the district of La Boca, also has a museum that tells the history of the team and its famous Buenos Aires players.

You can then head down the waterfront in La Boca to see the colorful houses that line the streets. La Boca is a typical ‘working class’ area of Buenos Aires and was home to waves of early immigrants to the city, a very interesting place.

Some final places to make sure you visit if you somehow find the time is the new Puerto Madero development, the newest part of the city, which backs onto the banks of the river and the Buenos Aires ecological reserve.

Also you should visit the area around Retiro station, with the grand clock tower ‘Torre de los Ingleses’ which contrary to recent Argentine British relations, was donated by the British government to commemorate the Argentine May Independence revolution and the closeness between the two nations at the start of the 20^th century.

Buenos Aires is a huge city that even residents have not fully explored. 48 hours is not enough to see it all, but you can always try!

But one of the city’s most fascinating – and little known – places is actually hidden deep underground in Buenos Aires’ colonial San Telmo district, and it is below the foundations of a 178 year old mansion that you’ll find one of the most unusual museums during your entire Argentina travel experience.

El Zanjón de Granados is a subterranean window into Buenos Aires’ long history, revealing how life in the city has changed since it was first established by the Spanish conquistador Pedro de Mendoza in the 16^th century.

Underground in the Zanjón de Granados museum, Buenos Aires, Argentina

A labyrinth of tunnels, passages and various rooms from which a range of artifacts have been recovered, El Zanjón (meaning “the hole” in English) contains a slave cell, a water cistern and various other remnants from a time when the ravine was inhabited.

Numerous colonial era antiques have been recovered, including African pipes, English china and French tiles, as well historic coins, ceramics, hair brushes and other items which are now on display in the museum.

The network was originally created by the city’s early residents but was built over and eventually forgotten to time while the city above grew and expanded. The building at ground level was converted into a luxury 23-room mansion in 1830 but had been abandoned by the 1970s and was being used as a dump by locals who had no idea of the treasures that lay underground.

Eventually the property was purchased by the current owner, Jorge Eckstein who has spent twenty years restoring the building and the historical network underground, turning it into a museum for the public.

During a one-hour guided tour, visitors to the restored-mansion can see the mansion’s guest rooms, the kitchen, three patios, an enormous reception hall, as well as the underground tunnels that are wonderfully maintained. A visit to El Zanjón is a must during your Argentina vacation and for any visitor interested in knowing a bit of the story of this city’s rich past.

http://www.elzanjon.com.ar

Defensa 755, San Telmo, Buenos Aires

Tel: 4361- 3002